From the Snowball Derby to the Right of Spring – Track Tech Q&A

About Being Late To The Party

I finally made the Snowball Derby and its companion, the Snowflake this year, both run at Five Flags Speedway in Pensacola, Florida. I was chastised by one racer for not ever coming to this huge event, but in years past, it ran on the same weekend as the PRI trade show or other competing shows, as it were. So, this year they did not compete for my attention or duty to the magazine.

I understand the attraction for this race, the season is over, the car can and will be rebuilt over the winter if something should happen, and winter has already started up north in places like Michigan and Wisconsin. Those folks will find any excuse to come south, trust me, I have lived in Florida all of my life. Most of the big name Late Model teams were here at this race.

This is a track where setup is crucial and being off just a few tenths can mean going home. And a good setup not only gets you into the show, it is important in helping to reduce the high amount of tire wear that Five Flags Speedway is famous for.

Now, about the title of this “Q&A” I did not misspell “Right,” I’m referring to the wide spread acceptance of springs for front bumpstops in not only asphalt Late Models, but for dirt cars too. Just about every major racing spring company is now offering a spring bumpstop. And there were very successful cars running on bump springs at the Snowball Derby.

It doesn’t stop there. The rumor has it that NASCAR has or will have approved using springs in place of the bumpstops and/or coil binding that has taken place over the past few years. Finally some sensibility comes to the sport after a period of frustration and conflict for the racers.

I have opposed bumpstops and bump rubbers from the very beginning. And don’t get me started on coil bind. You don’t want to go there. That said, I do fully understand the benefits of a low attitude of the front end of a race car. The lower center of gravity, the aero benefits (if there are any) and mostly the relatively fixed cambers in the front wheels are all beneficial. The cars like a consistent camber, not camber change, and always have.

Now, with racers being able to find bumps that are real springs with consistent spring rates that we know, we can finally get back to predicting our setup balance and finding the correct setup for the cars. It also means getting back to other setup parameters like improving bite off the corners, refining front end geometry and moment centers, Ackerman, and so on.

And if you remember, we ran an article a couple of years ago on an alternate way to create the bump attitude using the carbon-fiber bellows springs. These springs were not really practical for this application, but the test did show that a spring not only works as a bump, it is better.

I was also recently criticized by an industry insider for not jumping on the bumpstop wagon back when it started over 10 years ago. The author of that critique thought I was doing the magazine a disservice by being late to the party.

The only thing wrong I did, in my opinion, was that I waited too long to present a solution to the problem. I repeatedly spoke of how problematic the bumps were, but as is usually the case with complainers, I offered no alternative.

It is again an exciting time for racing and being able to develop new setups that are fast and consistent is nothing but a lot of fun. Everything we have done the past 10 years has evolved around those two primary concerns. We’ll keep going down that road as long as we have a voice to speak, and you can take that to the bank.

If you have comments or questions about this or anything racing related, send them to my email address: Bob.Bolles@sorc.com, or mail can be sent to Circle Track, Senior Tech Editor, 9036 Brittany Way, Tampa, FL 33619.

Thoughts on Racetrack Promotion

I’ve been racing for 37 years now and still winning races with the Midwest Classic Racers Dwarf Car Series located in Michigan. I started out visiting tracks at age 7 with my uncle. I built my first Street Stock in high school auto shop and raced it as soon as I turned 16. Through the years I’ve raced Limited Late, Outlaw Super Late, Modified, Enduro cars, Mini Sprints, and now Dwarf cars.

The biggest change I’ve seen over the years is that racetracks seem to think they need to run just special events with traveling series and drop their local classes to do this. I think this is dead wrong! Let me explain.

When I grew up, what got me interested was the local track announcer and the way he portrayed each and every weekly driver as a hero and a super star! I grew up knowing every driver and where they lived and what they were building for the next season, and more, all because of that announcer and his super job of promoting the locals as heros and stars. They were legends to me as a young person. Today, I know I’m no different than they are or were, but with the traveling series, not many young people have a clue who these guys are because they only see them once in a while.

I run a traveling series and there’s nothing wrong with the travelers, but the local tracks need to focus on a weekly series with 3-4 classes and promote the hell out of the drivers that put on the show and turn them back into super stars! Get the audience excited again about what’s to come in the future! Not every track can be an Eldora.

You said yourself that Kalamazoo Speedway was one of the best run tracks in the nation. I’ve raced there many times and the success they have is at least partly due to the local super stars that race there every week.

When a special show is run, they will usually only drop one class for the night to bring in the special. And a lot of their specials include their own regular classes, just bigger events. The announcer there is great at promoting super stars. Even Dwarf cars have superstar drivers thanks to our announcers that travel with us.

You talked about getting back to basics of building your own cars and engines. Well, I’ve been doing that for years. I think it’s the tracks turn to get back to basics and run a real racetrack on a weekly basis instead of the special of the week type shows. Get the fans involved on a personal level with the drivers and they are hooked! NASCAR putting the leash on its drivers personalities is killing that sport. They should be promoting the “boys have at it” and fill the stands again like the old days.

This is just a little food for thought from a guy who just won another feature and is leading the points as I write this. And yes, I know where my moment center is, and my balanced roll angles…grin.

—Junior Gould

Junior,

Thanks for writing. You are so right. Back to basics is for racetracks too. Comments like yours go a long way toward getting track managers and promoters to re-think the way they run their racetracks. And don’t think for a second that they are not reading this.

On my Tour over the past four years, I can’t tell you how many track managers told me that they read the magazine and quote things they read that stuck in their minds. Words are powerful and once heard or read, can remain with us for a long time. It is the truth in the spoken or written word that resounds.

Along the lines of what you are saying, when we visited Boman Gray Stadium during our first year on the Tour where they regularly pull in 17,000 plus in attendance, they promote their drivers like you described. They make Superstars out of them and the fans line up behind their drivers and root them on.

Whole sections of the grandstands are filled with one driver’s supporters. NASCAR was born and grew out of the same mold. Each fan had his or her favorite driver and it drove the sport, just like favorite football or baseball teams. I feel like we’re getting away from that and we need to find a way back. Thanks again.

Still Thinking About Stock Appearing

Please take a look at Delaware Speedway in Ontario, Canada. They have had bodies like you are describing for two years now in their Super Stock division. They have all three major manufacturers are available.

A local race car owner and part time racer created the fiberglass body program and sell the bodies at low cost $1,000 to $2,000. I really hope you follow up on this as it is a great program saving that class, which up north here has run out of steel bodies.

Thank you,

—Gareth Gonder

Gareth,

At this point in time, all of the major race car body companies are making bodies that look like and are shaped like, the showroom cars. This has been a while coming, but it is well worth it. Even NASCAR realized the value in having the Sprint Cup cars look like the showroom models.

Now that this idea is starting to go, more and more classes will take heed and begin making the change-over. Now the race fan can relate to the cars and be excited about rooting for a particular brand of car, like it used to be. This is a win, win situation for the entire sport of circle track racing.

A Tip about Exhaust Collectors

I know that tri-Y collectors can and do work great, if you have the room for them. One thing that makes them work great is when they are phased to the firing order. Getting the cylinders in phase with the collectors is critical to horsepower. Years ago we put a set on a dirt Modified, had it properly phased, and had made 15 more hp than before.

Also, we had to jet up the carburetor six sizes due to the fact that these pipes scavenge better. Phasing to the firing order is the key. When one fires it can create a vacuum in the paired exhaust, increasing the flow of cleaner air into the cylinder. Maybe you guys can show everyone how to do it. It makes a difference.

—Carl Ballinger

Carl,

Thanks for the tip. Maybe we can do a dyno test using different collectors on different motors from crates to full built motors and document the results. “Better” is always a product of what is desired and desirable.

You can gain top end hp at the expense of low end torque, just to give an example. Differences in horsepower curves must be evaluated and an engine might need to be track tested to see what the true advantages or disadvantages are for different components such as collectors. We’ll see if we can do something with that.

Suggestions for Rear Gear Ratios

I have a question pertaining to the gear ratios in a rearend and somewhat understand it from the article “Rearend Gear Guide—Gear Ratio Rationale.” But I’m still not sure of what I need. I’m looking for the best rearend gear ratio for the best cornering performance.

Which direction should I go, higher or lower (which way is which on the numerical scale)? I think I should go lower, but I’m just getting into all of the gearing and ratio stuff so I need some schooling on it.

Thanks,

—Newcomer

Newcomer,

That can be confusing. A higher gear means for the same rpm, the car will go faster, or at a higher speed. A low gear, such as first gear, means the car goes slower for the same rpm. So, a 5.50 rear gear would go slower at 6,500 rpm than a 5.00 ratio gear.

At the same time, a lower gear pulls better off the corners than a higher gear, but may run out of rpm somewhere down the straightaway before the car gets to the entry point of the next turn. A compromise is used to select the best gear for both conditions.

Usually, track testing can tell you what gear will be best for a particular car at the track it is running on. Other factors influence the selection of gear ratios and those include where the power band is within the rpm range, and the availability of bite or rear traction to drive off the corners. A lower gear might cause the rear tire to spin more easily losing ground whereas a higher gear would help keep the rear tires hooked up and be faster.

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